You have other choices than foreclosure...please read... With unprecedented foreclosure rates and the economy heading to unknown directions, proposed legislation targeting mortgages likely will modify the industry, and everyone must be ready to adapt. What should you do now to avoid losing your home? YOU MUST KNOW YOU HAVE CHOICES. How does the foreclosure process occur? The foreclosure process doesn’t just happen overnight. A typical foreclosure timeline can extend over several months. Each stage of the foreclosure process offers different types of opportunities for the buyer. The three stages of the Foreclosure process are (1) Pre-Foreclosure (2) Foreclosure Sale/Auction and (3) REO or Real Estate Owned by the bank. What is a pre-foreclosure? Pre-foreclosure represents the first stage in the foreclosure process. In this phase, the homeowner has missed at least one payment and is now considered delinquent on the loan. Buying a property in pre-foreclosure involves approaching the owner in default with an opportunity for the owner to escape the burdens of foreclosure. Your goal is to help the homeowner navigate through this challenging situation, relieve them of the growing mortgage debt and ultimately to avoid foreclosure. For you the buyer, pre-foreclosures offer potential discounts of 20 to 40 percent below market value, while helping out someone in distress (the owner). What is a foreclosure sale or Auction? The auction is the stage of the foreclosure process after the pre-foreclosure phase of the property has ended. You attend an auction (typically at the steps of the county courthouse) and bid on the home, just like any other auction. During an auction, the lender is now seeking to recapture its losses by auctioning the property in a public sale to the highest bidder. At an auction sale, buyers are typically required to pay in cash and have little time to research the property beforehand. However, an auction sale can offer some of the best bargains, often times as much as 35 to 50 percent below market value. What is REO property? REO stands for Real Estate Owned (by the bank). REO properties are another great opportunity to purchase foreclosures. The REO stage is the process after the auction, when the lender is either the successful bidder or there are no bids at all. In either case, the bank becomes the legal property owner and the property is considered a “non-performing asset” of the bank, which is a fancy way of saying the bank doesn’t want to hold on to the property. This means a solid buying opportunity for you, the homebuyer. While buying property from the bank is the easiest way to purchase a foreclosure, the savings opportunities are typically less than buying a pre-foreclosure or auction property. What is a HUD home? HUD is a shorthand term for the US Government’s Department of Housing and Urban Development. HUD’s mission is to increase homeownership, support community development and increase access to affordable housing free from discrimination. When someone with a HUD insured mortgage couldn’t meet the payments, the lender forecloses on the home; HUD pays the lender what is owed; and HUD takes ownership of the home. Then they sell it as quickly as possible, often at significant savings because most HUD Homes are affordable for low- and moderate-income Americans. HUD Homes are sold “as-is,” without warranty. That means that HUD will not pay to correct any problems. But even if a HUD Home needs fixing up (and not all of them do), it can be a real bargain! For example, HUD’s asking price on the home will reflect the fact that the buyer will have to invest money to make improvements. HUD might offer special incentives such as an allowance to upgrade the property, a moving expense allowance, or a bonus for closing the sale early. And keep in mind that on most sales, the buyer can request HUD to pay all or a portion of the financing and closing costs. Your real estate agent will have details. We encourage you to get the home professionally inspected before you make an offer so you will know what repairs you may have to make BEFORE you submit your bid.
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